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- 1 ConsenSys’s CEO has been sued by the company’s ex-employees on October 19th, 2023.
- 2 The employees of the company were promised equity shares in ConsenSys AG.
- 3 The initially hired employees were refrained from holding equity shares in the new company.
Prominent blockchain software creator company ConsenSys might find itself in a tough phase given a lawsuit drawn against co-founder and CEO Joseph Lubin. A few of the former employees at ConsenSys brought the lawsuit against Lubin in the wake of an alleged equity shares dispute. The plaintiffs argued that they were promised shares in the company but now they left with nothing valuable.
A group of 26 ex-employees of ConsenSys filed a lawsuit on Thursday, October 19, in the New York Supreme Court. The plaintiffs alleged that Lubin promised these employees equity shares in ConsenSys AG. Though they still hold the equity in the company, they are worth pennies after the new company emerged.
According to the filing, Lubin, who was also among the founding members of Ethereum (ETH) network, founded the leading Ethereum software company ConsenSys in 2014. The company has garnered a reputation across the world by employing top entrepreneurs, computer scientists, software developers, protocol engineers, and the like.
With intent to continue this, Lubin lured “smart and motivated colleagues” to join his company promising better opportunities than their existing jobs. Though the salary was said to be less initially, the employees were promised equity in ConsenSys. There’s a notion called “hub” in the company which includes ConsenSys and its crucial portions.
ConsenSys CEO allegedly boasted that the employees are going to work in a “future of cryptocurrency” company. The company will become “crypto Google” and their employees would then be paid off for their risk.
ConsenSys Changed Course and Ex-Employees’ Destiny
In the later years, Lubin divested the Switzerland-based ConsenSys AG, which also operates as ConsenSys Mesh. The company was acting as a “hub” and after its divestment, another entity was formed which was dubbed ConsenSys Software Inc., (CSI). All the assets belonging to the previous company were transferred to the newly formed entity.
However, the shifting of assets did not include transferring the ‘responsibilities’ such as equity shares to previous employees in the new company. The early employees were refrained from becoming equity holders and the already held shares were of no value as it was of a less valuable entity now.
In a significant development for the Ethereum blockchain ecosystem, ConsenSys has emerged as a prominent driving force, achieving remarkable success in its mission. The company’s flagship product, MetaMask, has garnered widespread acclaim as the leading non-custodial wallet in the Ethereum space.
Notably, ConsenSys recently secured a substantial funding round, attaining an impressive valuation of $7 Billion, underscoring its significant contributions to the Ethereum community.
The formal complaint against ConsenSys co-founder has been filed by 26 former employees, including notable individuals such as Griffin Anderson, Gaël Blanchemain, Pelle Braendgaard, and others, serving as the plaintiffs.
The defendants listed in this action encompass Joseph Lubin, ConsenSys Systems LLC, ConsenSys Inc., CSI, Matt Corva, JPMorgan Chase & Co., and Umar Farooq.
Nancy J. Allen is a crypto enthusiast, with a major in macroeconomics and minor in business statistics. She believes that cryptocurrencies inspire people to be their own banks, and step aside from traditional monetary exchange systems. She is also intrigued by blockchain technology and its functioning. She frequently researches, and posts content on the top altcoins, their theoretical working principles and technical price predictions.
